If you enjoyed these two films Basheva and you haven't seen it yet, do look out for Gades' 'Blood Wedding', Saura's first Flamenco film. It shows a dress rehearsal after some class in an airy, beautiful, empty room with light streaming in from tall windows. The 50 minute film is as lean as is possible, which heightens the sense of passion and tragedy.<P>Five stars only because there isn't a six stars category.

Thank you Stuart - yes, I have seen Blood Wedding - and I thought I had a tape for that too - but at the moment I can't find it in my index file. There were three films in all as I remember - all of them extraordinary.

Coming to the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, Saturday, December 17.

By Lisa Drostova, East Bay Express

At the crossroads of three deeply emotional cultures lies flamenco, an art that takes a bit here and a bit there from Spain, the Moors, and the Rom (Gypsies), and melds the bits–Spanish guitar, Gypsy singing, and dance hailing from a thousand different corners–into a spectacular whole. At its best, flamenco embodies precision, grace, and passion, and the dancers and musicians of Miguel Santos’ Theatre Flamenco are giving it everything they’ve got as they tour the Bay Area to mark the company’s 34th anniversary.

From the New York Times:<P><B>NEW YORK FLAMENCO FESTIVAL: BRINGING FLAMENCO TO THE NEW WORLD</B><P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>SEVILLE, Spain — The sounds of stamping feet and lustily strummed guitars burst from every corner of this radiant city last September during the Bienal de Flamenco. Day and night, in 16th-century plazas and Art Deco theaters, top-flight dancers and musicians celebrated the art over a four-week period packed with performances, workshops and classes. Since its founding in 1980, the Bienal has become the most popular and sophisticated festival of its kind, drawing fans to southern Spain from all over the world. Flamenco festivals are as integral to Andalusian life as sunshine and red wine, with almost every village known for its own individual style. It is where youngsters learn to perform, artists hone their skills and legends assert their supremacy.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> <P><BR><A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/21/arts/21GLAD.html" TARGET=_blank><B>MORE</B></A><P><BR>

CANNES, France (Reuters) - Internationally renowned Spanish dancer Joaquin Cortes said Wednesday he was a man with a mission -- to popularize Flamenco around the globe.

``What Michael Flatley has done for Irish music around the world, we are trying to do with Flamenco,'' he told reporters after flying in to the French Riviera resort of Cannes to perform before the world's top record executives at Midem, their largest annual trade fair.

From the New York Times review by Anna Kisselgoff:<P><B>LIKE A CHARGING BULL, THE SOULFUL HEATHCLIFF OF FLAMENCO</B><P><BR> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>At 18, Juan Manuel Fernández, known as Farruquito, is already one of the great flamenco dancers of this new century. With the power and purity of his technique and the magic of his brooding presence, he is nothing less than sensational.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> <P><BR><A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/30/arts/30FLAM.html" TARGET=_blank><B>MORE</B></A><P><BR>Wow, I sure wish I could see this !!<P>

<P>A FURIOUS POWER: the skirts and the long hair of Rosario Montoya lashed out to expand her already ample space as she spun in out-of-control turns.<P><BR>'Fancy feet - World Music’s flamenco doubleheader.' BY MARCIA B. SIEGEL in the Boston Phoenix. Sounds like a great evening:<BR> <A HREF="http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/arts/dance/documents/00408550.htm" TARGET=_blank>http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/arts/dance/documents/00408550.htm</A>

MADRID--To the uninitiated it could be mistaken for incomprehensible wailing with little appeal beyond the pouting dancers in skin-tight trousers and flowing dresses, but those in the know say it is a soulful, spine-tingling art form, one of the richest aspects of Spanish culture. Flamenco will never be music for the mainstream, but it has been enjoying something of a renaissance at home, gaining credibility in its purest form and even contributing to successful pop records.

'Flamenco - Lured by an Oleand the lady of the dance: Thanks to an enthusiastic teacher, students are flocking to flamenco classes at a New Mexico university.' Toby Smith puts on his dancing shoes.

Quote:

In alow-ceilinged room in an ancient gymnasium in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a short, energetic woman with a long ponytail stamps her feet in front of about 30 people. Not in anger, however; she is demonstrating flamenco footwork, or zapateado.

Her students, some in sneakers, sweatshirts and jeans, others in long ruffled skirts, blouses and sturdy black shoes, begin to follow her lead, accompanied by music with a pulsating beat.

You have to find your soul to dance flamenco. You also have to develop the authority and technique to play with emotion--which is one of the things that makes young dancers so fascinating to watch when they take on the task seriously.

Several caught the eye on Friday night in a program called "Danzas de Espana--The Next Generation," produced by the Fountain Theatre at the Los Angeles Theatre Center downtown. The technical level of dancing was high among the nine young women, ages 10 to 21, most of whom are students of Linda Vega, who choreographed much of the program and also returned to the stage after a three-year hiatus.

Flamenco dancer Eva Garrido is known as La Yerbabuena (The Good Herb) in her native Spain. But in her fabulous performance Friday night at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the intense artist was more flavorful than any traditional Spanish seasoning. Regarded as one of the most important young exponents of nuevo flamenco, she performed traditional solos with such powerful magnetism that the capacity crowd was transfixed.

From the New York Times:<P><B>A Madrid Flamenco Troupe Matches Steps With the Bulls</B><P>By LAURA KUMIN <BR> <BR> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>MADRID -- FEW images seem so quintessentially Spanish as that of a flamenco dancer, torso lifted, back arched, arms tracing a slow arabesque through space, and that of the bullfighter in his suit of lights, cape in hand, poised before a magnificent animal. Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana draws on both traditions for its newest production, "Mano a Mano," which will have its New York premiere on Tuesday at the Joyce Theater.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P><BR><A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/17/arts/17KUMI.html" TARGET=_blank><B>MORE...</B></A><BR><p>[This message has been edited by Basheva (edited June 17, 2001).]

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